Our First Outing as a Family of Four!

We had our very first outing as a family of four today! It felt good to get out and go somewhere... especially with Will. Usually when we go out, it's me and the kids, me with Maya, me with Liam, or just Will and Maya. It was great to have Will home for the day and to go do something together as a family! We headed to Grand Rapids this morning to visit the Frederick Meijer Gardens butterfly exhibit. After our arrival, we had a short delay to get to the exhibit because it was time for my little buddy, Liam, to eat. I settled into the library to nurse, while Will took Maya walking around the main building. Of course when I finished feeding him, he had a massive explosion in his pants, so I gathered up our stuff and went in search of a bathroom. Finally, with Liam was settled into my Kozy Carrier, we entered the butterfly exhibit. Maya was much more fascinated by the butterflies this year, and she kept holding out her hands saying, "Up, up!"... She wanted to pick the butterflies up... that is until they got near her. A couple of times, one flew right by her as she was saying that, and she pulled her hands in so fast! Maybe "picking up" the butterflies wasn't such a good idea after all!

I'm not sure what Liam was able to see. He cuddled with me in the carrier, sucking on one of the fabric straps, while he observed the activity around him. He was quite content to peer out from inside the carrier. I think his favorite place to be is snuggled up with me, so he couldn't care less about what everyone else was doing. We walked around the exhibit for probably 1/2 an hour before Liam and I just couldn't take the heat any longer. The combination of our body heat paired with the 80+ degree room with 100% humidity finally started getting to both of us. Liam was getting warm and sticky, and we needed some A/C stat. Will and Maya took one last trip through the exhibit before joining us in the main lobby. Maya needed just "ma-moe" (one more) time to see the butterflies. There really were several beautiful butterflies of all colors. It's a great exhibit for anyone who hasn't been, check it out!

After the Gardens, we went out for lunch at Noodles & Co. Maya was starving by the time we got there, so while I was putting in our order, she grabbed a dessert out of the basket on the counter. She chose a rice crispy treat bigger than her head (a girl after my own heart) and attempted to eat it through the plastic wrapper. After paying for the treat, I put it in the diaper bag (out of sight, out of mind for Maya), and we joined Will and Liam at the table. Liam was sound asleep in his car seat, so we gave Maya her drink to get her through until our meal arrived. Both Will and I were a little anxious to have Maya out at a restaurant. It had been quite a while since we had taken her out to eat, and we were in no rush since she started her eating shenanigans at home. However, we have reinstated the rules we used to have (pre-Liam) regarding eating only at the table, only strapped into her chair, and if she throws a fit/food/cup, she's done. Since then, she's been doing better at home, so we thought we'd take a chance in public. While we waited for our meal, another family sat down next to us. They had also chosen a rice crispy treat for dessert and sat it in plain sight on the edge of their table, right next to Maya. Great! There goes my "out of sight, out of mind" plan. Maya pointed at it immediately, and I thought, "Here we go...". I told her she could have hers after she ate her noodles, and that was that. She didn't fuss, whine, cry, or throw a fit!Soon our food came, and she ate her macaroni and cheese with her spoon, just like a big girl (most of the time)! It was only after we finished eating that I pulled out the crispy treat, and we all shared it. Yummy! Shortly after that, we packed up and headed for home.

Maya started to fall asleep when we were just about home, so I spent the last 15 minutes of our trip tickling her and making her laugh just to keep her little peepers open. Well, I turned my back for about 30 seconds, and when I turned back around, she was out. So much for that! All in all, it was a great day! It was fun to go on an outing, all of us together, and I was relieved to see how well Maya behaved at a restaurant. It gives me confidence to take her anywhere without having to worry about her acting out. I know she'll have her moments, as all toddlers do, but any apprehension that I had completely disappeared after today's events. I'm so proud of our Little Miss Maya! This is one of my favorite photos of the day. Look at that beautiful little face! Our baby is growing up to be such a wonderful little girl!